This based on a survey conducted by Nuffield Health, which questioned more than 3000 randomly chosen individuals. The majority of those who thought they were overweight were found to be obese when their BMI was measured. By deduction it is estimated that six million people in the UK may be obese and unaware of their BMI or the risk that their excess weight poses to their health.

The message is clear; if you suspect you are carrying more weight than you should be, find out what your BMI actually is. If your BMI is 30 or above, then please consider strategies to help you lose weight by becoming more active or maybe altering one or two elements of your diet which may have a significant impact. As mentioned in numerous previous blogs, there is also a lot of available help and advice in the community. Whether it is through patient forums, social interaction with others who have successfully lost weight or even a frank discussion with your GP who may have access to weight management services and can make an appropriate referral.

Whatever you do, don’t deny the problem, take action.

by Ahmed Hamouda; Obesity Surgeon on Google+, Twitter and Facebook.